Stop Writing About Pandora Radio Ink

2-24-14

Following our story about the upcoming Infinite Dial Study, to be released by Edison Research and Triton Digital, several readers complained that we even give Pandora the time of day. Others refuse to stick their heads in the sand and pretend there is no competition brewing. It was all about the teaser monthly stat released early from the study that 31% of all Americans 12 and over now listen to Pandora every month.

That monthly stat (for Americans 12+) comes from the 2014 Infinite Dial study which is was put together by Edison Research and Triton Digital this year and will be detailed in a March 5 webinar. The 2013 study had Pandora reaching 27% of the 12+ population. iHeartRadio is used by 9% while iTunes Radio rounds out the top three.

Other trends to be explored in The Infinite Dial 2014 include:
* An update on Internet Audio usage, including new data on iTunes Radio, Beats Music, and other services
* Recent growth in Podcasting
* The growth in smartphone ownership, and how it has changed consumer behavior
* Updates on social media usage for services including Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Pinterest and more
* The connected car, and in-car usage of digital media
Register here for the free webinar: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/125538472
The free March 5th webinar starts at 2PM EST.
Register HERE

(2/25/2014 3:41:02 PM)
Sarah's comments illustrate how hard it is for my beloved industry to grapple with the realities of a rapidly evolving media ecosystem. Denial and deflection among it's managerial ranks are the first signs of a great, mature industry in glacial decline. I love radio but it startles the hell out of me how many of my age 40+ peers and their kids are listening to Pandora and Spotify in addition to radio (or minus radio). Shocking.
(2/25/2014 3:02:00 PM)
Edison is a good company that does research+ surveys. So, they may have 700 respondents which is good but it represents about 300 million so please take this information with a grain of salt. Triton doesn't even monitor most of Pandora's competitors and attempts to convert AAS to AQH in an effort to help Pandora become relevant at the agencies so please understand the source. Pandora is a non simultaneous music streaming service so their customers can be reached 1 at a time. This is not radio!
(2/25/2014 1:21:57 PM)
@ Sarah. Most successful independent buyers are also successful salespeople. How else could they build a business if not for the ability to continually attract clients? But, your myopia is not worth another breath.

As to the accusations made against Ed, I refer you back to my original comments about the multi-platform deficiencies of radio. I understand that radio is trying to address it with their online components, but the integration is not yet complete.

(2/25/2014 11:37:08 AM)
Jen White left radio to form her own "media buying company." ( Agency)
All those like that that I've met were marginal at radio sales. They are very common.
No, Ed. You repeatedly lead with touts to other media and offer few radio success stories. The only radio news you regularly print are quotes from Lew Dickey and Clear Channel. You and Eric have basically given up on radio.
(2/25/2014 11:34:44 AM)
31% of Americans might be tuned into Pandora, but the rest of the Intelligent Americans are tuned into www.dixiebroadcasting.com online and HazzardAyre Radio over the air.

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Reckford To Run News Department For Cape Cod

2-25-14

Here's a hiring you don't really hear a lot. Cape Cod Broadcasting has hired Laura Reckford as its new News Director. CCB GM Bev Tilden said, ?Cape Cod Broadcasting has been a trusted resource for local Cape Cod news and information. Laura?s experience and leadership will assure that we continue that tradition as we grow and expand our news offerings.?

Reckford previously worked for the Housing Assistance Corporation in communications. She also founded CapeCodWave.com where she is currently editor and publisher. Cape Cod Broadcasting will partner with CapeCodWave.com as part of its development of its website CapeCod.com.

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Songwriter Equity Act Introduced

2-26-14

Republican House member Doug Collins from Georgia introduced the legislation yesterday. The bill is supported by BMI and ASCAP and opposed by the NAB. The purpose of the legislation is pay publishers to "update provisions in the Copyright Act to level the playing field for songwriter, composers and publishers to receive fair compensation for the use of their intellectual property." The legislation would allow federal rate courts to consider the fair market value for a composition when establishing digital performance rates. Currently, fair market value is not one of the guidelines that the special federal court considers when it sets royalty rates. They are regulated by law or through consent decrees

The NAB says if this becomes law it could impose new costs on broadcasters that jeopardize the future of our free locally-focused service. "NAB objects to changes in law that would deal with the financial imbalance between songwriters and artists by subjecting free broadcast radio stations to new fees."
BMI Chief Executive Officer Michael O'Neill said, ?This bill is an important step on the road to fairness for the more than 600,000 songwriters and music publishers represented by BMI. The current environment, where performances of sound recordings are valued at 12 times those of the musical compositions that underlie them, is untenable. Similarly, the rates set for making copies of musical works under Section 115 are artificially depressed and lack a relationship to the marketplace. We are simply asking Congress to take the evidentiary blinders off of the judges who control a significant portion of our writers? income from public performance and mechanical royalties. We are grateful to Congressman Collins for his leadership on this important issue and for his support in co-sponsoring this important bill. We look forward to working with Congress to find an equitable solution.?

ASCAP President and Chairman Paul Williams says by udating the outdated provisions of the Copyright Act in Sections 114(i) and 115, Congress has an opportunity to modernize the music licensing system so that songwriters and composers can thrive alongside the businesses that use our music. "The Songwriter Equity Act is an important first step toward a more effective and efficient licensing system that will benefit everyone ? consumers, music licensees and the songwriters and composers who are the foundation of the rapidly changing music environment. But while technology is creating amazing opportunities for music to reach new audiences, it?s also creating real challenges for songwriters and other creators when it comes to licensing our work, because the rules that govern how we do business haven?t kept pace.

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(SALES) Why Do Sales People Hate Sales Meetings?

2-26-2014

Memo

To: Sales Staff
Fr: Sales Manager
Re: Sales Meetings

?Effective immediately all sales training meetings are optional. If you are planning on attending our next training meeting, it?s Wednesday morning beginning promptly at 8.?

If you actually sent a memo like that, how many sellers would show up to the meeting? If all your sellers wouldn?t be there, excited to learn something new and be a part of the training session, you?ve got trouble. In my discussions and experience with salespeople, the number-one problem they have with sales meetings is boredom. Sellers feel they get nothing of value out of the meetings.

All too often in conference rooms, sales managers stand in front of the group, put a PowerPoint on the screen, and go on for an hour or more talking about how they used to sell; lecturing on about 15 different topics in each sales meeting because they feel that if they provide more content, they will keep the sales people excited.

The real problem with sales meetings is lack of involvement on the part of the sellers. Sellers have to be there, so they show up with their smart phones and tablets, or even laptops. They pay very little attention to what you?re doing or what is on the screen while they do everything from buy things on eBay to email clients.

Your intentions are good, you?re a good communicator, the topic for the training is relevant, it?s interesting, and something the salespeople should find value in. So what?s the problem?

In 1959, management guru Peter Drucker created the term ?knowledge worker.? A knowledge worker is a worker who?s main capital is knowledge -- they think for a living. In 1996, knowledge workers were able to retain 75 percent of the information they needed to do their jobs in their mind. So you could train them on a variety of topics in one session and they would retain the majority of that information and be able to do their jobs effectively.

By 2006, knowledge workers were only able to retain 8-10 percent of the information they needed to do their jobs. The American Society of Training Development?s report, In Search Of Learning Agility, concluded: ?There is no such thing as permanent competence or a fully developed skill-set in either individuals or organizations.? The implication of this is that training and development, like an advertising program, must be ongoing to be effective.

Edgar Dale was an American educationist who developed the Cone of Learning. According to Dale?s research, training that is active has a potential of 90 percent retention. Passive training can only hope to achieve a 10 percent retention rate.

I started this article with a fictitious memo to the sales staff. Would you be willing to send it? Most wouldn?t for fear of an empty conference room at meeting time. The good news is you can change the way you train. If you do you?ll find your meetings more productive, engaging, and rewarding. As a result, you will see more implementation and results in the field. Here are some suggestions for running great sales meetings:

? Share a piece of information or knowledge
? Turn off the projector and PowerPoint
? Sit down; stop standing in front of the room lecturing
? Ask questions that pertain to the topic you are trying to teach
? Lead the discussion. Sellers all have experience to share
? Require a next step. This is the implementation of the information
? Check in during the week to make sure that the next step is being taken
? Repeat the process every sales meeting

To know and not to do, is not to know. Engage your sellers with compelling content and then coaching them to do. When you take this approach you will reap the rewards of why you do training in the first place -- to change behavior. If you need help with creating content for your sales meetings, Chris Lytle and I would love to talk to you about our system.

Interested in more tools like these? Consider signing up for The Radio Sales Success Expander. We have two more live sessions left. The first two sessions are available for on-demand viewing.

Please take two minutes and go here to learn more. We?d love to have you on the next session.

Want a free copy of the Cone of Learning? Send me an email.

Jeff Schmidt is EVP and Partner with Chris Lytle at Sparque, Inc. You can reach Jeff at: Jeff.Schmidt@Sparque.biz
Twitter: @JeffreyASchmidt
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/schmidtjeffrey

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Clear Channel Partners With BandPage

2-25-14

BandPage is a platform for more than 500,000 musicians which uses a central online profile to reach fans. Today, BandPage announced a partnership with Clear Channel that will bring digital artist-curated content and tour information to radio listeners. Beginning in the second quarter of 2014, BandPage will power artist-profile content, including bios, photos, tour dates with quick links to buy tickets on iHeartRadio and all Clear Channel stations.

BandPage CEO J Sider said, "Radio has been a cornerstone of the modern music business for nearly a century and, understandably, musicians have been looking for a way to connect directly to radio fans in the digital era. Partnering with Clear Channel to provide artist-curated content and offers to iHeartRadio and Clear Channel's radio station websites represents an incredibly powerful way to help artists grow their fan bases, drive additional revenues and, ultimately, build their careers."

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Meyers Named Director of Digital Strategy at Greater Media

2-25-14

Steven Meyers has been promoted to the newly created position of Director of Digital Strategy at Greater Media. Meyers joined the company in 2012 in the role of Digital Manager at Greater Media Philadelphia. Meyers will now be responsible for helping to grow Greater Media?s audiences and revenue by developing new digital platforms that deepen listener engagement while providing new opportunities to the company?s commercial partners.

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Martinez Retiring From WRAT-FM New Jersey

2-25-14

Marty Martinez has been WRAT's morning show co-host for 13 years. His last day on the air will be Friday, February 28. Martinez said, "After 37 years of rocking the airwaves, I believe it's time to enjoy what life has to offer next. I felt like part of the Greater Media and the WRAT family from day one til right now. I'd like to thank Dan Finn for his faith in me and Carl Craft for sharing the insanity. The staff here is the best in Rock radio."

WRAT PD and co-host Carl Craft said, "Working with Marty for the past decade has been a total blast. We had some great times together on the air. It was like we were plugged into the same electrical current. I could list a million stories, but at the end of the day it always came down to having fun and doing the right thing for the audience."

Martinez began his career in 1977 as an overnight radio host at WNEW-FM, where he eventually went on to serve on the station's morning show from 1980 to 1999 before working as the Program Director of EYada, a pioneer in Internet talk radio, from 1999 to 2001.

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Congratulations to Best Country Programmers

2-25-14

Radio Ink would like to thank SONY Nashville, the Country Radio Seminar and Bill Mayne for another great event in Nashville last week. Radio Ink presented its 2014 Best Country Program Director awards during a star-studded event presented by SONY Nashville. Pictured here are 23 of the 25 Program Directors. Cox Houston PD Johnny Chiang from KKBQ-FM was voted the number one PD for 2014. 

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Mason: Scott Shannon Defines Local

2-24-14

CBS Radio CEO Dan Mason made it known to the entire company he runs how important the hiring of Scott Shannon is. Mason issued a company-wide memo stating it's personalities like Shannon who make local radio so special. He went on to emphasize how important live and local is to CBS Radio. "I?m thrilled to see those in and outside of radio taking notice of our commitment to making big investments in our over-the-air product and belief that great local hosts are what will drive this business forward."

Mason said Scott Shannon is by far one of the most accomplished on-air talents in our industry, and there are few names more synonymous with New York radio than Scott's. "Scott and I have known each other for many years, and he has always been a formidable competitor. Having him on our side of the microphone can only strengthen CBS-FM and the entire line-up that follows.

Shannon begins his run with WCBS-FM, hosting mornings, Monday morning. Mason says the station?s hosts have built familial relationships with the audience, and in return they?ve been loyal followers through the years. "This is a winning combination and formula for success that is replicated at stations all across our company regardless of format, and the more we keep focused on those ideals the better we perform in the long run."

(2/26/2014 2:43:39 AM)
Good for Mason and CBS. A company that walks the walk... unlike Clear Channel and their smooth-talking leader Pittman, who believe in voice-tracking, cookie-cutter national feeds, and anything but well-paid local talent.

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(COPYWRITING) Explain The Bribe In Your Commercial

2-26-2014

How can we get people to respond? Reward them for paying attention by making the commercial entertaining or relevant to their life ? solving a problem, relieving a pain.

Pay or reward them for taking a survey, coming to the store, visiting the advertiser?s website, filling out a form, submitting their contact and demographic information.

When we do that, whether it?s with a sale, offer, discount, free service ? in other words, a bribe, tell ?em why we?re doing it. It lets us share some truth with the audience, giving us a chance to build rapport with them. Here?s an example of how it could work for a furniture store:

Last fall at the big furniture show in NY, we fell in love with a beautiful Tiffany-style lamp, and we figured you would too. So we bought 300 of ?em. Well, we still have 73 left. These beautiful lamps with stained glass shades sell for $590 each in most stores and on sale for $295. We?ll sell you one of these lamps for $147. That?s less than we paid. Why did we decide to lose more than $50 on each sale?

We?ll clear out some inventory, you get a beautiful lamp for less than you could even if you bought 300 of them, but here?s our thinking: when you come in for your Tiffany style lamp, you?ll see the oriental rugs on display, you?ll walk through the exquisite room settings, you?ll get to see and touch one-of-a-kind furniture pieces, and you?ll most likely fall in love with something else here.

Offering you this work of art for only $147 is our way of luring you into our store. You may not buy anything else, but we believe you?ll come back when you want to buy furniture.

There are all kinds of ways advertisers entice prospects to interact with them:

? Loss leaders
? Free consultations
? Promotions
? Free bonuses
? Sales
? Test drives

Ask your client exactly why they are offering their enticement. What do they expect to happen? Then explain that to the audience.

Let the audience know why the advertiser?s doing it ? to bribe, lure, entice, seduce, or encourage people to come in.

When you explain the bribe you tell the audience what you?re doing. It?s a refreshing change of pace from the usual hype and it can help remove the barrier between sellers and prospects.

To get your very own free copy of ?Hedquist?s List of 238 Cliches,? email me jeffrey@hedquist.com and I?ll send them. Guaranteed to reduce commercial effectiveness.

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McWhorter Joins Journal In Knoxville

2-25-14

Ben McWhorter has been consulting Journal on sales since last May and now becomes the full-time Knoxville LSM. Journal has four stations in Knoxville: Q 100.3 (WCYQ-FM), Star 102.1 (WWST-FM), Hot 104.5 (WKHT-FM), and 93.1 WNOX (WNOX-FM). McWhorter's previous management experience includes jobs with New City Communications, Dick Broadcasting, and Arbitron. He moved to Knoxville in 2004 to become GSM for WIVK-FM.

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Ratings, Revenue & Methodology: Radio's Ties That Bind

2-24-14
The PPM has been in place for years now, and much of radio has become accustomed to it. But are Hispanic and Urban audiences really being represented accurately? Revenue is of course tied directly to ratings, so if ratings methodology influences the format more than its audience, the implications can be serious. How does Nielsen Audio plan to measure Spanish-dominant Hispanics -- and are its estimates for market-level data accurate? What explains the drop of many formerly top-rated Spanish-language stations under PPM?

These are some of the hot topics that will be under discussion the "Ties That Bind: Ratings, Revenue, and Methodology" session at Radio Ink's Hispanic Radio Conference, set for March 10-11 in San Diego. Charlie Sislen leads what's sure to be a spirited discussion among these research experts -- it's a chance to get all your questions answered about what really happens when the research rubber meets the revenue road.

Moderator:
Charlie is president of Research Director Inc. Before joining Research Director Inc., he was VP of marketing and research for Eastman Radio, a subsidiary of Katz Media Group. During his 12 years at Eastman, he sat on the Arbitron Advisory Council and headed up the RAB Goals Research Committee. He also worked at Arbitron as a client services rep for the ad agency division. Sislen began his radio career as a sales rep for WWDC-AM & FM in Washington, DC.

Panelists:
Julio B. Aponte Jr. is the senior vice president of Hispanic initiatives at Sun Broadcast Group Inc. His responsibilities include research, development,  and launching of new programming, as well as establishing new exclusive partnerships with affiliates to Sun Latino Networks, Sun's Spanish-language  division. In addition, Aponte oversees all sales strategies and new accountability measurements. Aponte's professional career spans across television and radio station management within the United States and Argentina. He has been affiliated with such influential media groups and organizations as, ABC/Citadel/Cumulus Radio Network in New York, MTV Tr3s, TV in Los Angeles, Univision TV, San Francisco, Radio ?nica San Francisco and Emmis Communications/Argentina.

Mary Beth Garber is EVP for radio analysis and insights for Katz Radio Group, responsible for collecting, analyzing, and generating research and other materials to educate a variety of constituencies -- from major advertisers to media, sales forces, and market analysts -- on the continuing power and value of radio, as well as implementing partnerships that provide accurate research and measurement metrics across a variety of platforms. Garber is the former president of the Southern California Broadcasters Association; during her 13-year tenure, she co-produced, in conjunction with Arbitron, three behavioral studies about media usage and helped create the first $1 billion radio market in the nation by promoting the strength of radio and the critical role it plays for advertisers and consumers. Her background also includes senior positions at advertising agencies, radio stations, and the marketing department of the studio division of the Walt Disney Co.

Bill Rose is SVP/Audio Client Services for Nielsen, leading Nielsen Audio?s team that provides service and support for radio programmers. He is also the company?s lead for key audio-industry organizations and is responsible for assuring that the voice of the customer is reflected in Nielsen?s communications, thought leadership, and product/research enhancements. He is also the author of many highly regarded industry studies. Previously, Rose held a variety of senior marketing and management positions at Arbitron. In addition to his tenure at Nielsen and Arbitron, Rose worked in radio station sales management at KSMJ/KSFM in Sacramento and as a consultant with Rating Point Management.

Only a few rooms are left for the convention dates at the Hyatt Regency Mission Bay. Don't miss your chance! Book your rooms -- and register for the convention -- today! The early-bird discount ends Thursday, February 27. Register now and save $200

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TALENT)Radio: It's A Beech

2-26-2014 

A pilot friend of mine did a stretch flying mail for the U.S. Postal Service some years ago. He flew a Twin Beech C-45H ? made in the late ?40s ? popular, but notoriously underpowered. When any of the pilots was questioned as to the single-engine performance of the aircraft, the tradition was to nonchalantly respond with: ?The scene of the crash moves further downrange.? 
Such could be an apt description of the state of modern, music radio. While radio is still running on both engines, the oil pressures are dropping, engine heat is rising, and there are some strange vibrations and noises in the cabin. Plus, maintaining altitude has only been as a result of fire-walling the throttles and throwing out anything in the cabin that isn?t nailed down. This includes cargo, passengers, and designated ?non-essential? crew.
The, so far, unchallenged criticism of music radio has been that in more than 30 years there have been no worthwhile improvements made in programming or commercial production. My contention has always been that, in fact, music radio has backtracked and become even less appealing and effective over this same time period.
Meanwhile, on factory floors, in workshops and garages all over the world, massive improvements are being made in the design and construction of all types of aircraft. Any owners of the venerated Twin Beech keep their planes airworthy for the sake of nostalgia and fun ? not utility. Pilots today can choose from any number of exotic aircraft including home-built, pressurized, 4-place turbine powered, personal missiles that cruise 1200 nm at 300 knots at FL 260.
That new media are flying circles around us and strafing our squadrons ? just for fun ? is a fact that also goes unchallenged. They can do this because they have better equipment and better-trained aircrew. Actually, music  radio?s talented pilot corps continues to either bail, or get pushed out the cargo doors. It comes as little surprise that those being dumped suffer their fate as a result of decisions made by some bureaucrat who is flying a desk!
Further, as to training: I can think of few other professional enterprises that require less formal training than music radio. People can get involved in flying without a formal license, but they can?t enter restricted airspace or present themselves for hire. Nobody questions that there might be a little more to the safe operation of an aircraft beyond a desire to ?yank it and bank it.? Radio, however, makes it a point to hire mostly those who can be suppressed and manipulated. I accept the argument that 80 percent of the on-air staff of modern radio is made up of some combination of people who are uneducated, inexperienced, and unqualified, but who are willing to work in a demeaning environment.
In order to bash the analogy into an even mushier pulp, it would be no great stretch to propose that music radio has been flying on ?automatic pilot? for decades. There was a time when this was considered a viable strategy that would lead to greater profits. If it did, it didn?t last long. Today, the words ?radio? and ?growth? don?t belong in the same sentence, or the same county. Now, if somebody wants to include the desperate clawing back from these last years of horrendous losses as a form of growth, they are welcome to do so. Some of the more credulous might find that acceptable.
Flying on ?automatic pilot? may have had some advantages for a while. It was this decision that allowed ownerships everywhere to jettison numbers of pilots, co-pilots, and cabin attendants. As it turned out, potential shippers and passengers were unimpressed by the machinations radio was applying, and continues to apply, and have found other ways of moving goods and people. People, apparently, still respond to the ?personal? (in the case of radio, the ?personality?) touch and are unimpressed by the cold, impersonal, and mechanical.
As a slight aside, I do much of my grocery shopping at a national chain store that is closest to where I live. Every time I walk in, I break the laser counter at the entrance threshold and an annoying, electronically generated voice ?welcomes? me to the store. Thus, my shopping experience begins with an internal, audio experience of ?What a line of impersonal bullbleep!? Radio has taken this ability to raise the hackles of listeners by communicating to them in subtle, but still demeaning, manners to extraordinary levels. So adept is radio at this strategy ? because of having unconsciously applied it for decades ? that it has lost all recognition that it is even doing so. To be more candid: I am completely satisfied that radio?s ownership and leadership have never had any idea they were committing these communicative felonies. They do, however, continue to deny they are guilty ? as charged. They are sincere, too, because they just don?t know.
As a result of music radio?s refusal to pursue any modernization in its communicative models, it finds itself sputtering along at dangerously low altitudes, without the reserve power to recover from even the mildest of stalls. Another strong headwind (possibly supplied by other, competing media) could be enough to bring a number of our aircraft down.
Ownership and management have been presuming that new technologies will provide the long-awaited answers to what has been ailing music radio. They would be mistaken. Any real and lasting improvements will come about only as a result of radio improving its audience services and its production of commercial content. Neither of those can be provided by any technology.
Unlike the entrepreneurs, experimenters, and even lay hobbyists who have been driving innovation in aviation forever, radio embraces no such dedicated gang of enthusiasts. To the contrary, radio?s ownership and management consider such individuals as irritants ? totally unwelcome, annoying, and of no real use anyway. ?Increase hangar security!? they say.

Ronald T. Robinson has been involved in Canadian Radio since the '60s as a performer, writer and coach and has trained and certified as a personal counsellor. Ron makes the assertion that the most important communicative aspects of broadcasting, as they relate to Talent and Creative, have yet to be addressed. Check out his website www.voicetalentguy.com

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WBEZ Offers Listeners Pledge-Free Stream

2-25-14

Chicago's WBEZ will eliminate requests for money for online listeners who give $15 per month or more as part of the WBEZ High Fidelity Program. Other listeners can also sign up for pledge-free listening by making a one-time $40 donation. Membership Director Jillian Shepherd said, ?We?re experimenting by adding this to the range of special offers and exclusive events that members already get access to. We want to say ?thank you? to our loyal members who have stuck with us year in and out with an opportunity to listen to the station they know and love outside of our pledge drives.?

WBEZ FM is one of the few major market public radio stations to provide this pledge-free stream, joining WQXR (New York), WHYY (Philadelphia), and KQED (San Francisco). The quarterly pledge drives, which vary in length from 2-9 days, are WBEZ?s most important method of fundraising, from which the station aims to raise over half of its revenue. The pledge-free experiment starts March 6.

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Hispanic Consumers Love Digital

2-25-14

BIA/Kelsey has just released its Consumer Commerce Monitor Study, which concludes, Hispanic consumers are outpacing non-Hispanics in their adoption of mobile, social and online sources for local shopping. Nearly a quarter (23.6 %) of Hispanic consumers reported they use tablets for local shopping, compared with 15.5 percent of non-Hispanics. And nearly half (48.5 %) of Hispanic consumers use mobile devices for local shopping, compared with 32 percent of non-Hispanics. Among mobile Hispanic consumers, 52.5 percent report using their tablets and 42.5 percent report using their smartphones daily for local shopping.  

BIA/Kelsey defines local shopping as any stage of the purchase funnel, from awareness through research, to transacting for products or services locally (within a 25-mile radius of primary residence). The firm's definition of local products and services includes items such as groceries, restaurants, drugstore items, gasoline and other high-frequency purchases.

BIA/Kelsey VP of Analysis and Insights Celine Matthiessen said, "How the Hispanic consumer shops will affect how a local business advertises and builds loyalty with this community. An integrated social, mobile and loyalty strategy will be a necessity to attract this demographic, as Hispanic consumers are very loyal to local businesses. Hispanic respondents to the CCM study reported that they supported an average of six businesses by becoming a fan or follower or liking a local business."

According to the BIA/Kelsey report, when using social media for local shopping, Hispanic consumers index higher than non-Hispanics on all social media networks, except Facebook, with 61 percent of Hispanics and 67 of non-Hispanics reporting they use Facebook for local shopping. Other social networks used for local shopping include:

YouTube: 17.7 percent by Hispanics; 10.3 percent by non-Hispanics
Yahoo: 16.8 percent by Hispanics; 16.4 percent by non-Hispanics
Google+: 11.9 percent by Hispanics; 10.8 percent by non-Hispanics
Twitter: 11.1 percent by Hispanics; 6.7 percent by non-Hispanics
Despite their heavy social media use, 83.2 percent of Hispanic consumers list family and friends as their most trustworthy source for local shopping information. 

BIA/Kelsey will present data on Hispanic digital media usage and local shopping behaviors from its Consumer Commerce Monitor study during a free webinar this Thursday, Feb. 27. Webinar details and online registration for "Hispanic Consumers Buy Into Digital for Local Shopping" are available HERE

And BIA/Kelsey SVP and Chief Economist Mark Fratrik, will participate in Radio Ink's Hispanic Radio Conference on a discussion panel titled, "Investment Strategy: The View From Wall Street and Main Street." He will share further findings from the CCM survey, as well as examine investment opportunities in Hispanic radio.
Register for the Radio Ink Hispanic Radio Conference HERE

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(SALES) The Way

2-24-2014

You?ll have to be in a real quiet place to understand this article. And you?ll have to switch your mindset to ?Eastern thought? to understand the book I mention below. You might not understand it at all, and that?s fine too. Even if you don?t understand ?Eastern thought,? you can still take away some gems from this.

A couple months ago, a friend of mine called to check up on me. Good timing, I needed the check-up. The group he helped finance had brought me in to do sales training for their company a few years back. He sat in the back of the room observing me and taking notes as I instructed and demonstrated to the salespeople and management.
The day after the sales seminar, we had a Saturday morning session for management only. He was the one who schooled me that day with wisdom and knowledge for management and we?ve kept in touch since then. Over the years, he helped me put together a case study for sales management on finding the ?oil leaks? in your sales department. You won?t find his book at the local bookstore. You?ll just have to contact him for a copy. His name is Joel Martin Hartstone.

In martial arts, if you have some special masters, they will also teach you ?The Way? -- in meditation and focusing on your one purpose, or what they call your bushido. Joel?s book is a management book ? a short one, and it?s meant to be short. It?s written in the tradition of the ancient Zen Koans in Haiku, which is a poetic form of Japanese: three lines of five syllables, seven syllables, and five syllables. It?s written for you to go back over them again and again to understand their meaning -- much like working on your forms in martial arts. And then there will be that day when you run across it and finally get the real meaning of The Way. To help you, here is a quote from the introduction of the book from Joel.

?Because some principles of life also work in reverse, the Koans are meant to be read both forwards and backwards. Above all, they must be pursued in harmony, remembering that the first Koan always applies. Some will seem inconsistent with others, but that is the nature of The Way. In every pursuit, you must come to peace with how conflicting interests, your own and those of others, are optimized to create a harmonious equilibrium.?

Here are a few of the ?Themes from human nature for managing yourself and others? from The Way. (I will write these in one line each, but remember they are actually three lines of verse.)

?         Doing it yourself, deprives others of learning, and yourself enslaves.
?         Never ?not that way,? nor ?just this way,? but always a goal and a way.
?         Never clone yourself, your ways are represented, seek new perspectives.
?         Murphy?s Law applies, would you like to consider, backups for backups?
?         Is best really best, if the marginal gain is, unsustainable?
?         You can own assets, you can?t own a company, people won?t be owned.
?         Teach using small words, don?t frustrate learning with your, vocabulary.
?         Partners share the gain, but they share the risk as well, that?s how you can tell.
?         There?s no ?just try it,? either you will have done it, or you will not have.
?         If your time?s all spent, running something day-to-day, can you lead the way?
?         When what was assumed, comes to pass as predicted, stay true to your plan.
?         The horse will know the, rider is untrained and be, uncontrollable.
?         Keep my secret? Yes, Keep my secret? Yes, I will, Keep my?I heard that.
?         If you must do things, others disapprove, don?t rub, their noses in it.
?         You must account to, the person watching when you, look in the mirror.
?         Measure your success, by the success of the folks, you?ve left in your wake.
?         I would have done thus. Why is it they do elsewise? Because, they?re not you.
?         Marketing. One truth, give the people what they want, nothing else will do.
?         With a good costume, a horse looks like a camel, don?t try the desert.
?         ?How do I do it??, often means ?show me the way,? don?t tell, demonstrate.
?         Only the young know, all there is to know of life, age teaches us that.
?         Time is currency, but we can?t count our balance, and we can?t make more.
?         Linear thinking, brings a risk of a kick in, the back of the head.
?         The difference is, that those who do it, do it, and, those who don?t, don?t.
?         If you don?t decide, you decide you will accept, the default result.

I, of course can?t do Joel?s book any justice. Maybe some of those ?Koans? will make sense for managing yourself and others in the ancient Zen Koan tradition. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, Joel.

Here?s my one Zen Koan:
If you want Joel, then you must reach out to him, contact him yourself.

Sean Luce is the Head National Instructor for the Luce Performance Group International and can be reached at Sean@luceperformancegroup.com or www.luceperformancegroup.com.

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(PROGRAMMING) The Return Of Garth

2-24-2014

Garth Brooks is the valedictorian of the class of ?89; a group of country artists that included Alan Jackson, Brooks & Dunn, and Clint Black. They took Country radio and music sales to new heights. All were young performers with distinctive points of view, tracing their heritage back to the traditions of country as well as to the roots of rock ?n? roll.

But it was Garth Brooks who altered the playing field. He brought a rock ?n? roll mentality to the music, the stage, and even to the marketing strategy, which launched and maintained a meteoric career trajectory that lasted nearly 10 years. Brooks broke both sales and concert attendance records over that time. At one point, it was declared that Garth Brooks had outsold the Beatles.

Then Garth ?retired? in 2001, in order to participate more fully in his daughters? upbringing. He vowed he would not return to the road until his youngest daughter finished high school. Now that time has come. Garth, now 51, has announced a three-year worldwide tour, with dates and locations yet to be announced. New music will accompany the tour.

What will Garth?s return mean to the Country radio format? Will it heighten music sales?

He has always been radio-friendly and generous with his time (as evidenced by a recent satellite radio ?tour,? in which he appeared live on nearly every reporting radio station over the course of a week). There is no reason to believe that he won?t be equally accessible when the tour and new music roll out.

There are basically two camps regarding the impact Garth will have on Country radio. One side says the format has moved beyond him. Trends in entertainment change, and a newer, younger generation of stars has propelled the format in the ensuing years, especially in the 18-34 demos. Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean are also preparing stadium tours for this summer. Garth?s recent single release (a duet with wife Trisha Yearwood) was largely ignored by Country radio. Could an attempted comeback fall on deaf ears?

The other view is that you should never count out Garth Brooks. His Las Vegas shows have consistently sold out. The latest CD release of a boxed set of repackaged greatest hits and cover versions of songs that influenced him has been perched at the top of the album charts, in spite of its limited availability (sold in physical form only at Wal-Mart). Garth has never been in better voice and he is still a master showman. His recent CBS-TV special profiling his Las Vegas run easily won its ratings time slot.

There is no doubt his return to the concert stage will benefit Country radio. Just how large an impact will depend upon several factors, including:

The music: It?s always about the music. Can Garth bridge the generations? Today?s country music is even more rock-based than was true during his heyday. Will his new music appeal to the heart of the key 25-44 female demographic that drives Country radio? Great music drives great ratings.

The show: Anyone who has seen a Kenny Chesney or Taylor Swift stadium show can tell you that it will be tough to top the level of entertainment presented at these and other contemporary concerts. Garth will not only be competing with current acts, but with the memory of what he has accomplished in the past.

Marketing/social media: Will Garth embrace social media? He does not have an official Facebook page. His website is bare-bones. He has never allowed his music to be legally downloaded. Will he make his music accessible beyond physical CDs and radio airplay?

Tee Gentry, operations manager for Beasley?s cluster in Augusta, GA and PD of Country WKXC, says, ?The awareness of Garth?s return will be big. Once he is on tour, everybody will be talking about the experiences they have at his shows. I believe he still has it. Now we need a radio hit from him.?

Garth?s return has the potential to drive ratings and revenue, as stations will immerse themselves in ticket promotions and listener experiences that the artist has never shied away from.

Don?t bet against Garth Brooks. Whatever the result, the Return of Garth will be fascinating to watch.

Joel Raab currently consults Country stations in 11 of the Top 25 radio markets, for companies including CBS, Entercom, Greater Media, Beasley, Saga Communications and Mt. Wilson Broadcasting. He can be reached at JoelRaab@aol.com. Visit his website at www.joelraab.com. Follow him on Twitter @joelraab

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iHeartRadio App Moves to the Wrist

2-24-13

Clear Channel  announced its entry into the wearables market with a new app for the just announced Samsung Gear 2. This integration allows Samsung Gear 2 users to remotely control their iHeartRadio smartphone app from their wrist. The app will be compatible with more than 30 devices including the Samsung Galaxy Note and S series smartphones, as well as Galaxy tablets. Gear 2 will be available to consumers in April.

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Morning Man Quits After One Week

2-24-13

The Kansas City Star reports Randy Miller quit after being on the air at KWKJ-FM for one week. He started Monday, February 10 and quit Friday, February 15. KWKJ co-owner Greg Hassler told the paper, "Guess we were not what he thought. He never really gave it a chance. Think we might have been a little small-time for him." On his Facebook page, Miller wrote: ?Just couldn?t get any callers that wanted to take part. Tried to give away a $1500 set of diamond earrings, and got ZERO entries. Makes it tough.?

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Omaha Station Draws $17,000 NAL

2-21-14
Cochise Broadcasting, licensee of KOMJ-AM/Omaha, has received a $17,000 notice of apparent liability from the FCC's Enforcement Bureau, which says it failed to maintain and staff a main studio and make a public inspection file available. Along with the NAL, Cochise has 30 days to submit a statement saying it's established and staffed a main studio and made a public inspection file available.

This dates back to August 1, 2013, when an agent with the Enforcement Bureau's Kansas City office went to inspect KOMJ, but was unable to find the address of the main studio or contact anyone responsible; calls placed were transferred out of state and went to voicemail, and a message went unreturned. A voicemail to one of Cochise's owners also was not returned.

An FCC agent was later told that the main studio was at Journal Broadcast Group's studio for KMTV-TV/Omaha, but a Journal receptionist said that wasn't the case. A manager later said some files might be there "but that he would have to research the matter."

This all brought a notice of violation to Cochise over failure to maintain a studio and public inspection file. Cochise responded by reiterating that its files were at Journal's studios. After letters of inquiry went out to Cochise and Journal attempting to clarify matters, Journal said that Cochise pays a monthly fee to house its files at KMTV's main studio, but that there is no Cochise equipment or staff at the site. The bureau doesn't think that's sufficient, and Cochise now has 30 days to pay the forfeiture or submit a request for a cancellation or reduction.

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JAM'N 107.5 Returns To Portland

2-21-14

Clear Channel Media and Entertainment Portland brought JAM'N 107.5 back to Portland Thursday, featuring hits from acts such as Drake, Jason Derulo, Chris Brown, Jay Z, Beyonce, Macklemore, Pharrell Williams, Justin Timberlake, Rihanna, and Flo Rida. The new station will also embrace its hip hop and R&B legacy, featuring jams from back in the day like Dr. Dre, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, 2 Pac, The Notorious B.I.G., Ice Cube, Ja Rule, Ludacris, 50 Cent, Aaliyah, and more. Mark Adams, vice president of programming for CCM+E in Portland, said, "We?re keeping all of the things our listeners loved about Wild, while embracing the musical heritage of the JAM'N brand in Portland."

"By bringing JAM'N back to town, we are meeting a need for a musical genre that is not being adequately met in the market right now," said Market President Robert Dove. "This is the perfect station for listeners who love hip hop and R&B from back in the day, as well as the newest rhythmic hits. It?s the both of best worlds."

Fans can lalso isten to JAM'N 107.5 via the station's website www.JAMN1075.com, as well as on iHeartRadio. 

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Clear Channel Reports Strong Fourth Quarter

2-20-14

Clear Channel reported Q4 radio revenue of $845.5 million today, an increase of $24 million or 3%. Excluding political revenue was up 8%. The company says the increase was due to stronger national and digital advertising, as well as promotional and event sponsorship with the expansion of the Jingle Ball tour, iHeartRadio Music Festival and album release events. Clear Channel also said Q1 of 2014 was pacing up 3%.

Clear Channel CEO Bob Pittman said, "Clear Channel continued to create new businesses based on the strength of our core assets and to provide customized multi-platform market solutions to advertising partners that nobody else can. At Media+Entertainment, we further expanded our events business -- reaching nearly 4 billion social impressions with December's Jingle Ball national tour, following up on September's iHeartRadio Music Festival's 2.3 billion social impressions."

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Pandora Would Be Number 17, Not Number One

2-21-14

Clear Channel says there are now 43 million registered iHeartRadio, an increase of 84% from the end of 2012. Without specifying how many listener hours iHeartRadio had, the company reported total listening hours were up 29% over 2013, with approximately 300 million downloads and upgrades. Mobile represented 54% of iHeartRadio total listening hours during the fourth quarter of 2013.

Earlier this month Pandora reported 1.58 billion listener hours for January. Pandora also reported it was approaching 9% of total radio listening, which Clear Channel CFO Richard Bressler said is impossible if you just do the math, and don't take Pandora's word for it. Pandora self-reports that number.

Bressler said comparing Pandora to radio is not comparing apples to apples: "They claim to be number one station in some radio markets. It's statistically impossible. Today, less than 40% of people stream their music. Radio makes up 92% of listening according to Nielsen. That leaves all other digital providers 8%. It's mathematically impossible for them to be number one in any market. If you added up all the Pandora streams in New York, they would be around number 17."

Bressler said, "We [Clear Channel' are radio first. Pandora is a playlist, a feature. With 3,000 salespeople, he said, "We have not seen any impact on sales from Pandora."

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Nationalization and Voicetracking a Disaster

2-20-14

That's one of the conclusions Edison Media President Larry Rosin came to as a result of his company's detailed study on millennials and Country radio, which was presented Wednesday at CRS in Nashville. The Edison study included an online survey of 1,550 12-34-year-olds and face-to-face interviews with millennials around the country about their attitudes towards country music, Country radio, and music listening and media habits in general. Following the presentation, Rosin gave his take on what radio needs to do to compete with the increased number of options listeners have to consume music.

One point from the study the radio industry may want to take act on quickly is where millemnials identify new music. Radio has taken a beating lately over repetition and not being open to new music. However, in the Edison study, almost every respondent interviewed live said radio was the place they went to discover new music before they made their purchase. Rosin said, "We are where Americans go to hear country hits, but we need to sell that more."

When it comes to social media, it will come as no surprise that millennials use between four and five social media sites every day. And following you on Facebook for no real reason did not seem to be high on their list. Perhaps if you gave away tickets or held some other contest they would. However, liking a radio station on Facebook received a lukewarm response. Overall, Rosin believes radio needs to double down its effort to reach millennials on social media. They are out there and they are constantly using social media, whether its Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Vine, so if a radio station develops a relationship with listeners on the platforms, it can only be a plus.

Radio's brand is live and local and easy to operate, Rosin noted, and radio scored high with respondents for being simple to use: They turn it on and their favorite radio station is waiting. No making playlists, no tapping a thumbs up or down, no downloading songs or looking for an aux jack. However, there?s no doubt that Pandora is a major competing force for radio in this age group. Everyone knows about Pandora, and most use it in some way. Some use it more than radio. And they love it.

Pandora was mentioned more than any other competitor to radio when millennials were interviewed. What Pandora cannot match is radio's live and local strength. That is, if their favorite radio station has one. They love the morning shows that make them happy. They love hearing about local events. Some love attending events where they can actually see who they've been listening to. That seemed to lead Rosin to make the statement that, "Nationalization and voicetracking are a disaster."

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Midessa Broadcasting Buys KRGN/Amarillo

2-20-14

Christian station KRGN/Amarillo, TX, has just changed hands for $700,000. Midessa Broadcasting LP purchased the station from Family Life Communications. The respective brokers representing the parties were Greg Guy of Patrick Communications, and Kalil & Company.

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Brody Becomes Sr. AE At Greater Media/Boston

2-21-14

Richard Brody will be in house March 3 as a senior AE at Greater Media's WROR in Boston. He most recently spent eight years at CBS Radio's crosstown WXLZ and 985. The Sports Hub. Greater Media/Boston DOS Mark Keaney calls it "a great strategic hire for WROR-FM."

Keaney goes on, "Rich is a longtime radio veteran and a true professional. He understands the value of live and local radio which epitomizes the WROR brand. We are very fortunate to have him on our team.?

WROR GSM Matt DiRoberto adds, "I'm looking forward to working with Rich. I've heard so many great things about him over the years.  His work ethic and knowledge of the business will be a tremendous asset to our station and team."

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Survey: Agencies Still Wonder About Social, Video ROI

2-21-14

A Strata survey of advertising agencies found that while social media and online video were "major areas of focus" for advertisers in Q4, those agencies aren't really sure they're getting value for their clients from those channel. Still, 87 percent said they were interested in using social media in client campaigns, and nearly all -- 98 percent -- said they're just as interested -- or more -- in streaming/online video compared to a year ago.

Facebook is still the leading social media channel for advertisers; 81 percent of respondents said they'd use Facebook in clients' campaigns. Other popular channels are YouTube and Twitter, with a "big shift in sentiment toward Pinterest," Strata reports.

Meanwhile, 54 percent of respondents said they'd buy more social media if the value was "more obvious," while 41 percent said they'd be more open to social media with changes including an easier process, more obvious effectiveness, lower minimum volumes, and less complex targeting.

Strata EVP Joy Baer said, "In the advertising industry, the buzz often comes before the payoff. Everyone wants to buy social media and online video because it's the way the industry is heading, but the real ROI is more complex to define. It's a science that is still being developed."

And traditional radio? Strata found interest has dropped 67 percent since 2010, but "interest in streaming radio is growing tremendously, with 58 percent of respondents more interested in the medium than they were a year ago."

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Radio One Net Revs Rise In Q4

2-20-14

CEO Alfred Liggins was upbeat on Radio One's fourth-quarter earnings call Thursday, saying, "We feel good about our Q4 core radio business."  Net revenue from radio and Reach Media was down 2.2% due to political comp; excluding political, radio and Reach were up 5%, to $66.4 million, from $63.2 million in Q4 2012. Overall, Radio One's net revenue in the fourth quarter was up 5.4%, to $111.6 million from $105.9 million in the same quarter in 2014. Liggins said on the call, "We feel good about our ability to grow our radio cash flow again in 2014."

Radio One's station operating income in the quarter was approximately $39.1 million, up 9.9 percent from Q4 2012, with operating income of $17.5 million, compared to $14.6 million a year before. Net loss was $16.4 million (35 cents per share), compared to a net loss of $17.2 million (34 cents)

Liggins said that Reach Media and the Interactive One Internet division "took nice leaps" during the quarter, with Reach's net revenue coming in at $12.3 million, up from $11.1 million a year before, and the Internet business bringing in $8 million, up from $5.2 million.

Asked about the impact of Q4's severe weather on the radio division, Liggins said, "We haven't tried to drill down and quantify it. It's difficult." Even after the weather problems, with Radio One and its advertisers being closed at times during the quarter, he said, "Our plus-3 was probably not that far off from what we were forecasting."

Asked about Radio One's possibly taking a similar approach to Cumulus Media's NASH initiative in country, Liggins said, "I think we already are doing what they want to do." He went on, "They've got a country brand called NASH, we've got an urban brand called One," with a cable network and a big online business. He said, "I find it really interesting to see Clear Channel rebrand as a media and entertainment company, and Cumulus Media has got their strategy -- well, this has been our strategy for the last 10 years, and it's paying off."

Liggins also said radio broadcasters should be able to participate in the "renaissance" of streaming radio: We've got most of the revenue, we've got most of the talent." He said, "If the differential is that [pureplay streamers] have 100 engineers creating a unique user experience, it would seem to me that's something radio could tap into." He pointed to Radio One's own BlackPlanetRadio, which partners with Songza for its music. He added, "Our digital strategy needs to be as much about how people listen to our radio station and as much about how they interact with our websites and the content we deliver to them there."

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WGN Hires Blogger

2-24-13

Julie DiCaro will perform multiple roles for WGN-AM, WGN.FM, and WGWG-LP/The Game 87.7, according to the Chicagoland Media blog DiCaro will take over social media for the stations, she'll be writing sports blogs for the websites and have an on-air role on The Game 87.7. A former attorney, DiCaro left her lawyer life two years ago to pursue writing about sports.

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Bob Kingsley Celebration Benefits Opry Trus Fund

2-20-14

The surprise celebration held Monday night for Country Radio Hall of Famer Bob Kingsley at the Grand Ole Opry House also raised $50,000 for the Opry Trust Fund. 

Kingsley was honored for his 40 years in national radio syndication as part of the American Country Countdown (1974-2006) and as host and owner of Bob Kingsley?s Country Top 40 (2006-present), distributed by WestwoodOne.  The event included performances, appearances, and taped messages by a mix of industry legends, today?s hit-makers, and Nashville?s most influential singer-songwriters.

(Pictured L-R) Steve Buchanan, President, Opry Entertainment Group and Board President, Opry Trust Fund; Bob Kingsley; Nan Kingsley; Pete Fisher, Vice-President and General Manger, Grand Ole Opry
(Photo courtesy of Chris Hollo for the Grand Ole Opry)

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Mark Fratrik Moves Up At BIA/Kelsey

2/19/14

Mark Fratrik, Ph.D. is named SVP at BIA/Kelsey, moving up from VP/chief economist. Fratrik joined the company in 2001 and has been a leader in its research and forecasting initiatives on local media, including the recent growth of online, digital, and mobile. He also manages the Media Access Pro database and analytical application for BIA/Kelsey, providing detailed information for the radio, TV, and newspaper industries.

"Mark has played an integral role in the growth and expansion of our company, adding to the trust we have forged as advisers to media companies large and small," BIA/Kelsey founder and CEO Tom Buono said. "He has a tremendous understanding of the media industry and how technologies and trends affect revenue. His insights and understanding bring our data and analytics to life so people can act on the information we provide. That skill is highly valued by our clients."

Fratrik developed BIA/Kelsey's Media Ad View forecasts for local advertising by media and business category, and is the author of the "Investing In" publication series and the "State-of-the-Industry Radio" and "State-of-the-Industry Television" reports. Fratrik will be part of the "Investment Strategy: The View From Wall Street and Main Street" panel at Radio Ink's Hispanic Radio Conference, coming up March 10-11 at the Hyatt Regency Mission Bay in San Diego.

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Aresti Joins L.A.'s Go Country

2-19-14

KKFO (Go Country 105) adds Klaudia Aresti to the lineup, appearing with Larry Morgan in mornings and with afternoon driver Paul Freeman. She starts Monday at the Mount Wilson FM station. Aresti was formerly with crosstown KOST-FM, and with her arrival Go Country will be adding traffic and entertainment features in morning and afternoon drive.

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NABEF Honors GM With Corporate Leadership Award

2/19/14

The NAB Education Foundation is set to present its Corporate Leadership Award to General Motors during the 16th annual Celebration of Service to America Awards. The award is given each year to a non-broadcast business that "exemplifies an extraordinary focus on community service and corporate social responsibility."

NABEF President Marcellus Alexander said, "Through strong, ongoing support of education, health, community development, and environmental initiatives, General Motors and the General Motors Foundation have made a positive impact on American society."

The GM Foundation has granted more than $265 million in support of various nonprofits since it was founded in 1976.

GM SVP/Global Public Policy and Communications and GM Foundation Chair Selim Bingol said, "The GM Foundation is dedicated to making life better for communities across the U.S., and for the people who live there. We thank NABEF for this special recognition and promise to continue trying to make a difference in the lives of Americans."

The Celebration of Service to America Awards will be held June 17 at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC.

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Richard E. Wiley To Receive Broadcasters Foundation's Mays Award

2-19-14

The Broadcasters Foundation will present Wiley Rein LLP Chairman and former FCC Chairman Richard E. Wiley with its 2014 Lowry Mays Excellence in Broadcasting Award. The award will be presented at the Broadcasters Foundation Breakfast on April 9 at the NAB Show in Las Vegas.

Wiley Rein has the largest communications practice in the nation, with 80 attorneys. In his tenure as FCC chairman from 1974-77, Wiley lessened regulation and fostered increased competition in broadcasting. He also played a pivotal role in the development of HDTV. At Wiley Rein, he represents such major organizations as Verizon, AT&T, JP Morgan, Credit Suisse, Motorol, CBS, SiriusXM, Emmis, and LG. In 2002, he was presented with the NAB's Distinguished Service Award.

The Lowry Mays Excellence in Broadcasting Award "honors an individual in broadcasting whose work exemplifies innovation, community service, advocacy, and leadership." It is underwritten by the Clear Channel Foundation and Wiley Rein.

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Surprise Tribute For Bob Kingsley

2-18-14

As Nashville gears up for the start of the Country Radio Seminar, some of the biggest stars in the format were at the Grand Ole Opry House last night to celebrate Bob Kingsley's 40 years as host of American Country Countdown. Garth Brooks said, ?He?s where you always want to hear your music. And then once you go on his show, he makes everybody feel like somebody. But he?s not two-faced. He?s not putting it on. This is truly how he is ? a sincere, sweet man that loves the music and I think more than that even, he loves the artists that do it.?

Kingsely believed he was heading to the event to introduce a video so he was totally surprised. ?I?m just overwhelmed by this. I had no idea this was going to happen. I am just amazed about this evening, and I thank you all for coming.? The Tennessean has more details about the event.

A 50-year veteran of the radio and music industries, Kingsley walked into the Grand Ole Opry House believing he was there to pay tribute to the Grand Ole Opry?s 89th birthday, when in reality, the evening was all conceived to honor him. "I could not have been more surprised. I could not feel more honored. I have made a career of country music radio because I love it, and to have my friends in the business, from artists and songwriters to industry executives, tell me my work has made a difference--well it means the world to me.  And to have the people I work with day in and day out here to celebrate with me makes it all the more special."

Nearly 50 artists participated in the evening, which included 25+ taped video messages, along with in- person appearances or performances by Rhett Akins and Thomas Rhett, Alabama, Lynn Anderson, Garth Brooks, Eli Young Band, Radney Foster, Janie Fricke, Jack Ingram, Jewel, Kathy Mattea, Martina McBride, Reba McEntire, Will Robinson, Tom Schuyler, Red Stegall, Jeffrey Steele, Tanya Tucker, Steve Wariner, Lee Ann Womack, Wynonna, Trisha Yearwood, and Chris Young.  Many of the artists who paid tribute commented not only on their professional relationships with Bob but also on their personal friendships. Bob?s dedication and commitment to bringing their music to the fans, while offering insights into their creative processes and personal lives, have made him the most listened-to voice in country radio history.

(2/18/2014 8:35:36 AM)
I've been in Country radio for over 40 years and Bob has always been someone I looked up to and wanted to be like. He still has the top countdown show hands down. Thanks Bob!
(2/18/2014 8:05:13 AM)
Bob Kingsley has truly been an inspiration to several generations of country fans and radio people (I am both). My oldest son, Nick, who now does mid-days at 100.7 The Wolf in Seattle, and I would often listen to Bob's countdown & discuss his mellow delivery and knowledge of the music through the years. So great to see Bob get this "love" from the artists & our industry. Brent Alan-Brand Manager 92.7 The Van, Holland Mich & Nights WNWN-Battle Creek Mich
(2/18/2014 6:45:18 AM)
American Country Countdown was one of the first syndicated shows we ran on our radio station here in Idaho, back when ACC first started. Got to chat a few times with Bob, or see a liner come in from him, he did three just for me. I remember the big box of LP's, that came with AT40 we ran both formats, You'd have to run both turntables and be right on cue, for the program to sound right. congrats Bob.

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Chaz & AJ Hold Benefit For Injured Police Officer

2-19-14

Chaz & AJ, who host mornings on Connoisseur's Rock WPLR/New Haven and Classic Rock WFOX, are holding a benefit for Brett Morgan, a New Britain police officer who was run over and dragged by a stolen car last month. The "Stand Up for Brett" comedy benefit is set for Friday, February 21 at Trinity on Main in New Britain.

Morgan was seriously injured in the January 19 incident and, after several surgeries, has been released from the hospital to continue his therapy and rehabilitation.

The comedians set to perform Friday include Dave Reilly (seen on MTV and Fox), and Gary Petinella, with Joey Mitchell hosting. Fairfield Police Chief Gary MacNamara will also make an appearance. Tickets are $15 and are available online at http://www.wplr.com/ and http://www.959thefox.com/ until 5 p.m. Thursday, and after that can be purchased at the door. All proceeds will go to the Brett Morgan Benefit Fund to help Morgan and his family with medical expenses.

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Clear Channel Sells Stake In Australian Network

2-19-14

APN News & Media is ready to pay $246 million (Australian, about $222 million U.S.) to Clear Channel to take full control of its radio assets, in which Clear Channel owns a 50 percent stake. With the deal comes an exclusive 10-year agreement to operate and broadcast the iHeartRadio digital platform in Australia and New Zealand, and an exclusive option to act as iHeart implementation partner in "a number of Asian markets."

The deal includes Clear Channel's stakes in APN and in the Radio Network Limited and will give APN 100 percent ownership of the largest network of stations in Australia and New Zealand. CEO Michael Miller said, "ARN and TRN are businesses that we know extremely well, having run them for almost 20 years. They are managed by highly competent teams and continue to deliver growth in both audience numbers and advertising revenues. We are confident that radio will continue to grow as a medium and that ARN and TRN will continue to capture a greater share of the market."

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(PROGRAMMING) "Do it Right" Lessons From Jimmy Fallon

2-19-2014

History will bear out the success or failure of NBC's big move of Jimmy Fallon to the Tonight Show, but until then there are some great lessons for radio to consider from this process.

One big takeaway that hit me right away was the comment that Stephen Burke, the chief executive of NBC Universal made when he made a financial commitment involving studio remodeling to Ted Harbert (the chairman of broadcasting for NBC): "Do it right."

Think about how that comment should be a driving force for everything we do in our business with regard to our product: the talent content, the imaging, the contest and promotional filter, the digital strategy, the social media strategy, the listener/customer service strategy, the marketing strategy. "Do it Right" should be the mantra.

Think about how many times we have all heard "we can't do that" or "we haven't done it that way before" when we are around a planning process.

Maybe we have even uttered those words ourselves and didn't even realize it.

"Doing it right" consisted of hiring Eugene Lee a renowned theatrical set designer and hiring Spike Lee to direct an opening sequence shot.

Lorne Michaels the executive producer of the show has a unique perspective considering his Saturday Night Live history with NBC: "Broadcast has been in decline since I got here in 1975, no one was spending any money. Even at SNL our balcony is still classified as temporary. These guys are spending real money. Steve Burke and Brian Roberts of Comcast, they believe this is the future, as opposed to "We're stalling on the present as long as we can."

Another great lesson in the pursuit of excellence that should be imbedded in everything we do.

So when we gather our team together and plot out world domination, or at least market domination, let's "do it right."

That mentality not only drives our own greatness but pushes our industry!

(2/19/2014 11:34:19 AM)
Agreed, Buzz - and from as many quarters as possible as often as possible. I'm glad to see serious people chanting. :)
(2/19/2014 10:10:32 AM)
Rpnald: Completely understand your point. Still think its an important mantra to try and push
(2/19/2014 9:37:11 AM)
My question, Buzz - and I'm stone-cold sincere about this - is: How many station owners and managers even have a "pursuit of excellence" notation scrawled anywhere on their "to do" lists....?

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Woody And Wilcox Show Joins WVBZ In Greensboro

2-19-14

The Woody and Wilcox Show is the newest addition to the lineup at Clear Channel's Alternative WVBZ (105.7 The Buzz) in Greensboro; they'll be on the air from 6-10 a.m. beginning February 24. The show is already heard on sister WEND (The End) in Charlotte. Buzz PD Keith Allen says, "We are excited to bring the power of the Woody and Wilcox Show to the Buzz. Their show transcends the Alternative format and is one of the most entertaining morning shows in the country."

The show features Woody and Wilcox's signature segments "Fun with NASCAR Audio Clips," "Fun with Football Audio Clips," "Craigslist Price Is Right," and more.

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FCC Issues NALs For EAS Violation, Unlicensed Station

2-19-14

The FCC has issued a $9,000 notice of apparent liability to JCE Licenses, saying it failed to maintain operational EAS equipment and EAS logs at KBXD/Dallas. And in an unrelated matter, an Austin couple has received an NAL for $15,000 for operating an unlicensed station at 90.1 MHz.

KBXD was inspected in January of 2013, and the FCC agent found there was no EAS equipment installed. At the time, the station GM admitted that there had been no EAS equipment since KBXD returned to the air in late 2012 -- there were also no EAS logs documenting tests transmitted or received. JCE has 30 days to pay the forfeiture or appeal for a reduction or cancellation -- and the same amount of time to file a statement that it's in full compliance with the EAS rules.

In Austin, the husband-and-wife duo of Walter and M. Rae Nadler-Olenick get a $15,000 NAL for, the commission says, operating an unlicensed station at 90.1 FM. Responding to a complaint, agents in August 2013 tracked broadcasts to an antenna atop a tower mounted to the side of the Olenicks' Austin apartment building. After receiving a warning letter from the FCC, the  couple responded that they didn't recognize the FCC's jurisdiction or consider themselves subject to U.S. laws.

In November 2013, the station was found to be broadcasting again. Noting that "contrary to the Olenicks' assertion, the commission does not lack jurisdiction over the use of radio transmitting equipment within the state of Texas," the Enforcement Bureau issued the NAL. The Olenicks have 30 days to pay up or file for a reduction or cancellation of the forfeiture.

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(COPYWRITING) Deconstruction

2-19-2014

By Jeffrey Hedquist

?Deconstruction? is an approach you can use for an advertiser who offers more than his competitors and wants to demonstrate that to his audience. In your commercials, keep taking away benefits until what your client offers is the same as the competition.

Here are some approaches:

1. Apologize:

Unfair. That?s what it is, and we feel guilty about it. There are lots of places you can buy appliances in this county and yet, we at Fernslogger?s are getting most of the business. We felt we were being unfair to our competition. So we thought, ?Why not eliminate some of the things we do for our customers, like free delivery?? If we didn?t deliver for free we?d be more like other stores. Free setup and training. Maybe if Fernslogger?s didn?t help you get the most out of your new appliance, it would be a more even playing field. Prices. Maybe we?re not charging enough. After all, that?s one of the biggest reasons more people buy their appliances at Fernslogger?s than at any other store in the area.

Now if we did all those things, we?d be more like the other stores, but then?you?d have a more difficult time choosing where to buy your next appliance. So we said, ?Naaaahh. We?ll keep doing business the way we?ve always done it.?

Free delivery, free setup and training, and lower prices. Fernslogger?s apologizes to all the other stores for being unfair.

2. Demonstrate with SFX (crash sounds, or customer complaint sounds):

?OK, dump the free beverages!?
SFX
?Get rid of the free super-size nachos!?
SFX
?Eliminate the 2-for-1 specials!?
SFX
?No more free coffee refills!?
SFX
?OK, now we?re like the other Tex Mex restaurants in town.?

3. Simplify. Offer fewer choices, less service:

If we hired a cost-analysis expert to increase profits, they?d probably suggest serving a few less fries with every sandwich, putting canned vegetables in our soups instead of our fresh-from-the-garden ones, and making our milkshakes just a little smaller. Well, we might make a little more profit, but then?we wouldn?t want to eat here. Hmmm, I think we?ll just keep serving the extra fries, fresh vegetables, and bigger shakes.

And, if your client doesn?t offer more products, services, help, experience, or training than their competitors, then reread my article ?Parity Advertisers Aren?t All Alike? (SMRN July, 2008).
To get your very own free copy of ?Hedquist?s List of 238 Cliches,? email me jeffrey@hedquist.com and I?ll send them. Guaranteed to reduce commercial effectiveness.

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Whiplash Country Stations Rebranding As Hank FM

2-19-14

Whiplash Community Radio is set to rebrand its Cat Country stations to the Kroeger Media Hank FM, syndicated by Envision Networks. The stations making the change include KTTE/Springfield, CO, and KXCT/Goodland, KS, with more stations set to switch over later in the year.

All the new Hank FM stations will be programmed locally and feature Alan Kabel in mornings and the newly syndicated Country Legend Nights with Tina Thompson, a show created by Lash. They'll also share a single website at http://www.hankfm.org/. Lash's Last of a Dying Breed Broadcasting already airs the Hank format in Linden, TN.

Whiplash President Chris Lash said, "Howard Kroeger thinks out of the box, and we've clicked. I think the Hank FM brand means country music like no other brand out there. I'm thrilled to be working with him on this and other future projects."

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Compass Launches Country Show With Dee Jay Silver

Compass Media will syndicate the Country Club With Dee Jay Silver, offering one to five hours of "uptempo mixes and mashups" for Country radio. Keith Kaufman will serve as OM, programming and producing, and, says Compass, "Each week's program will feature hits from country music's biggest stars and newcomers, with an infusion of unique rhythms and occasional hits from other genres."

Kaufman said, "Dee Jay Silver is a star. He's built a very unique brand. Creating a radio show makes perfect sense. Silver will be ratings gold. We're going to have a blast!" Kaufman owns Center Stage Tour Promotions; before starting the company he was Clear Channel director of broadcast operations and director of promotions and marketing, and PD of WSIX/FM/Nashville.

Silver has appeared on tour with such stars as Brad Paisley (currently), Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Rascal Flatts, and Eric Church.

Compass CEO Peter Kosann says, "Country music is hot and getting hotter. We are thrilled to be a part of bringing this cutting-edge type of programming to market."

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(SOCIAL) Make Social Media Easier

2-19-2014

If you?ve been reading my social media content for a long time, you know that I like to say that ?technology changes; people don?t.? 

So, I am big on focusing on your social media content strategy for engaging listeners more than I am on the technology of social media. That?s because putting the work in to have a real strategy to benefit your radio station is important. Putting consistent effort in to make your engagement authentic and steady is powerful where using technology to shortcut isn?t always effective. That?s because the best social media is helpful, authentic, and sincere. It?s not just manipulation.

But today, every once in a while, I like to give you shortcuts or ways to make your social media efforts easier, because we all have less time today. So, let?s get started and give you a few helpful tools to make your sharing easier, and less time consuming. Let?s make your social media ?easier.?

1. Hootlet. This simply makes sharing easier, faster, and frankly more fun for you! Watch a quick video and ?off you go.?  http://tinyurl.com/m6ngl2z
2. How do you get more listeners to share your videos? You have a very visual business; you may have good video from your morning show or a video of backstage at a concert. How do you achieve really good sharing? Watch a quick video and off you go.  http://tinyurl.com/ag7pprd
3. Focus and consistency. I know. I gave you two tools above and videos to watch to make your social media life easier. Why have I added the words ?focus and consistency?? (And where is the video, right?) I added this number three because most people will avoid truly focusing their efforts or being consistent in continuing their social media once they have an actual plan (many will avoid the actual planning). People will often spend twice as much effort avoiding work than simply doing what it takes to buckle down, and come up with the specific strategic plan they need for developing actual social media benefits for their local station or cluster, and even revenue generation. If you develop the best plan and the easiest software and tools but your effort fades, you have nothing. Commit to making sure your team remains focused on the real prize: Being consistent with your social media engagement of local listeners (and clients). It will pay off.

The videos above are the best two videos you will watch today to boost your social media connectivity and make it easier for you to become more successful with your efforts. They?re worth your time.

The hard work is developing the right strategic plan and showing you have a top-down commitment to valuing social media from upper-management. Make sure you include your full staff (anyone who will touch social media) in the ?buy in.?  Doing those things is critical to having strong success in social media. Then, use the tools above for some shortcuts and to make your efforts more efficient.

Enjoy your social media strategy. It shouldn?t be a time waster for you. Engaging local listeners has always been our thing at radio. Social media just provides more tools to do it. Master those tools and you increase your own value. Good luck.

Loyd Ford is the direct marketing, ratings and social media strategist for Americalist Direct Marketing and has programmed very successful radio brands in markets of all sizes, including KRMD AM & FM in Shreveport, and WSSL and WMYI in Greenville, WKKT in Charlotte and WBEE in Rochester, NY. Learn more about Loyd here:  http://about.me/loydford. Get his radio-social media content sent directly to your smart phone or email for free here:  www.rainmakerpathway.wordpress.com. Reach out to Loyd via e-mail HERE.  Visit his Facebook radio social media page HERE.

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Sheridan's Davenport To Receive Award

2-19-14

Ronald Davenport Sr., owner and chairman of Sheridan Broadcasting, will receive the Founders Award at the 5th annual Black College Football Hall of Fame Dinner on March 1 in Atlanta. The award is presented to individuals who have helped ensure the ascension and success of the Black College Football Hall of Fame and football at historically black colleges and universities (HBCU).

The BCFHOF, founded by Grambling State University Quarterbacks James "Shack" Harris and Doug Williams in 2010, honors the greatest football players and coaches from HBCU schools. 2014 inductees include former New York Giants defensive end Michael Strahan, Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver John Stallworth, and Houston Oilers linebacker Robert Brazile.

Sheridan Broadcasting has for the last 40 years selected and honored a Black College All-American Team, and has named Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year and a Coach of the Year, and also crowned a National Black College Football Champion. All will be recognized at a reception on February 28 in conjunction with the BCFHOF inductions.

Davenport said, "While I am honored and humbled by the award, I am proud of the hundreds of players we've recognized over the years who have gone on to distinguish themselves on and off the football field. That we have made small contribution to their lives gives me joy."

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FCC Plans New Net Neutrality Rules

2-19-14

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler says the commission will "accept the invitation" of the DC Circuit Court to "act to preserve a free and open Internet" with new net neutrality rules. Wheeler said in a statement that his proposed rules will "meet the court's test for preventing improper blocking of and discrimination among Internet traffic."

Last year the DC Circuit overruled the FCC's rules on net neutrality in the FCC v. Verizon case, on the basis that the FCC was attempting to impose "common carrier" regulation on the Internet. The ruling said, "Because the commission has failed to establish that the anti-discrimination and anti-blocking rules to not impose per se common carrier obligations, we vacate those portions of the [FCC's] Open Internet Order."

So Wheeler is taking another shot at it, saying he'd like to "enforce and enhance" the transparency rules that were upheld by the court in the Verizon case and find a persuasive legal rationale for a "no-blocking" rule that would protect the edge providers that use the Internet to deliver goods and services. He said, "We will carefully consider how, consistent with the court opinion, we can ensure that edge providers are not unfairly blocked, explicitly or implicitly, from reaching consumers, as well as ensuring that consumers can continue to access any lawful content and services they choose."

Wheeler also said the FCC will keep on the table the possibility of reclassifying Internet access as a telecommunications service -- giving the FCC the authority to regulate it as such. Additionally, since Wheeler feels the court ruling gave the FCC the OK to new rules, the commission won't be taking FCC v. Verizon back to court.

Read Wheeler's full statement here:
www.fcc.gov/document/statement-fcc-chairman-tom-wheeler-fccs-open-internet-rules

Wheeler also announced that a new docket to solicit public comment has been opened, called "Protecting and Promoting the Open Internet."

The Republican members of the commission are skeptical of the move, with Commissioner Ajit Pai comparing the announcement to the movie Groundhog Day and saying, "The Internet was free and open before the FCC adopted net neutrality rules. It remains free and open today. Net neutrality has always been a solution in search of a problem."

Commissioner Mike O'Reilly, meanwhile, said in a statement that he is "deeply concerned by the announcement" adding, "It appears that the FCC is tilting at windmills here. Instead of fostering investment and innovation through deregulation, the FCC will be devoting its resources to adopting new rules without any evidence that consumers are unable to access the content of their choice."

(2/19/2014 10:53:19 PM)
I thought he was a Nigger - LOL!

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Melendez to Program The New "Beat" in Houston

2-14-13

Clear Channel's new 93.7 The Beat in Houston announced today that Mara Melendez has been named the station?s first Program Director. Melendez most recently programmed 103.5 The Beat in Miami after working in New York, where she was part of the team that launched Power 105.1. The station will carry the nationally syndicated morning show The Breakfast Club from 5-9:00 a.m., UB Rodriquez from 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Rudy Rush in afternoon from 2-6:00 p.m. and evenings with Devi Dev. The previous format before the flip was Classic Rock.

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Two Florida Translator Purchases By Cox

2-16-14

Cox has agreed to purchase the construction permits for W246CY (97.1 FM) in Bradenton and W273CP (102.5 FM) in New Port Richey. Cox will pick up the translators from Circuitwerkes for $187,950. Cox has an Alternative Rock format out of Holiday at 97.1 and talker "The Bone," (WHPT) out of Sarasota on 102.5. Bob Heymann of Media Services Group served as the broker representing the buyer in this transaction.

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MANAGEMENT)How To Succeed As A Market Manager

2-17-2014

You can?t guarantee success, but you can deserve it. ? John Adams

I wish there were a foolproof recipe for being a successful market manager that I could follow like I was baking a cake. Sadly, there isn?t. But there are some things I plan to focus on in 2014.

See people face-to-face whenever possible. I want to engage employees and clients face-to-face whenever possible in 2014. There?s a great line in the film We Are Marshall: Matthew McConaughey (playing a football coach) is urging David Strathairn (school president) to ask the NCAA in person for a special exemption. He says he?d bet the school president didn?t propose to his wife over the phone and she didn?t accept by writing him a letter. And so it goes in sales and management. Relationships start with communication, and the most meaningful communications are direct and in person. Know your (and the competition?s) audience. To hit a mark, you need to know what your target is. It?s the same thing with ratings ? not only quantitatively, but qualitatively as well. Consumer tendencies, buying habits, trends, everything we can learn about the people we are trying to reach will help us to deliver a product more in tune with what they want. For example, traffic information is important, but which roads do your listeners care about? Research has helped a lot, but it?s important to have a first-person understanding of your station?s audiences and your clients? customers. When selling with numbers, it?s important to not only know what the numbers are, but why the numbers are.

Get out of your office. I?ve never closed a lot of business sitting at my desk. A market manager needs to be visible with employees, clients, and especially the community. Be in meetings. Spend time in production or traffic. Go to other managers? offices for internal meetings. Get out to see clients. Go to your station events when you can. Be involved in your market. Attend events and charity galas. Show up at the ribbon-cutting for that big client. Go to the breakfast business event featuring the politicians. Corporate owners are often the industry face of the company. But as market managers, we are often the local face of our stations to the communities we serve.

Help the community ? and help yourself. ?Awareness is the cornerstone of caring, which is the first step in giving.? Being involved in local media provides us with awesome opportunities to help our communities. Our airtime is helpful in raising awareness of charities, causes, and community initiatives. So find those that are important to your listeners, advertisers, and employees, and support them with PSAs, public affairs opportunities, postings on your websites, and, when possible, with sponsorships and donations. Make your stations a vibrant part of the community by finding things to be involved in. Lead by example, and encourage and support your employees? involvement. Being an involved and helping corporate citizen makes your stations, and you, more credible, influential, and powerful.

Get busy living with digital ? or get busy dying. Not every company has the resources to make the
upfront investment in an internal digital structure that will yield a return on investment. But passion and belief in new platforms starts with us. If you are not on board, or not interested in how digital can become a meaningful part of your revenue mix, then your employees won?t be either. Radio is perfectly suited to making digital marketing programs thrive. Our proprietary relationship with our listeners combined with how ?what we hear makes what we see more memorable? makes radio conducive to producing results with multi-platform marketing programs. And a smart social media initiative can only help keep us connected with a rapidly changing, dynamic audience. Get on the digital train. It starts with you.

Make corporate your partner. I keep a copy of the old Hans Christian Andersen story ?The Emperor?s New Clothes? in my office. It?s to remind me that telling people what they want to hear often leads to overconfidence and failure. It happens between us and our employees, and it can happen between us and our corporate offices as well. Stop spinning, and start communicating. Of course we want our bosses to think we are doing a wonderful job, but being on the front lines in a market can make yours a valuable perspective for a corporate team. Our ultimate job is not only to protect their investment, but to grow it. As market managers, we need to communicate openly, directly, and honestly ? not just about the good, but the not-so-good as well. Like in The Godfather: Deliver bad news
quickly.

Be open to new eyes on old problems. Our business is changing every day, and more than ever I am trying to look at things in different ways. I?ve always said confidence is being comfortable with what you don?t know. Lastly, in 2014, I?m going to try to have fun. It?s why we got into this business in the first place, isn?t it?

Dave Widmer is GM and market manager for Connoisseur Media/Long Island and can be reached at 631.770.4200 or dave.widmer@connoisseurli.com.

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